Lineage
by duckie lover 151
Summary: A new student has enrolled at the DWMA. He's nice, polite, and soft-spoken... but things aren't always what they appear, and everyone's got at least one secret to hide. Meanwhile, things seem to be falling apart between two partners. FULL SUMMARY INSIDE
1. Chapter 1

**Complete Summary: A new student has enrolled at the DWMA. He's nice, polite, and soft-spoken… But things aren't always what they appear, and everyone's got at least one secret to hide. Meanwhile, things seem to be falling apart between a certain meister and her parter. When his secret comes to light will it tear them further apart or bring them back together?**

**Lineage**

**Chapter One**

Dr. Stein strode down the hallway on his way back to his classroom, much more tense than he had been before his meeting with Lord Death. No, it hadn't been a pleasant conversation, but there wasn't much he could do about it.

The class only sort of quieted down when he walked in, and, surprisingly, Maka wasn't one of the ones who did. Instead, she continued her conversation, or at least, her attempted conversation, with her partner.

"Why do you think Stein was late today?" she asked. Soul simply 'nn'ed in response and shrugged.

Maka frowned in annoyance. If not that exact response, he'd given a response very much like it to everything she'd said that morning. What was so interesting about the desk all of a sudden? She turned grumpily to the front of the room as Stein started class.

At first there was nothing unusual about class that day. Then, about halfway through the day, right before lunch, Stein stopped.

Now, Stein may seem like he didn't care much about the class, but usually he had them working right up until the bell rang. So when he just stopped, even Soul looked up.

Stein said nothing. He glanced up at the clock then towards the door. Then he waited. Just a second later the door opened. A girl walked in, followed closely by a boy.

The boy was really not all that tall. He was about the same height as Maka. The girl, however, was exceptionally short.

Her head of bright orange hair stopped about an inch below the boy's shoulder. Her hair was pulled back into two loose pigtails, making her look even younger. Even her bright blue eyes seemed to have an air of innocence about them. You could barely see the white blouse she wore because of the gigantic red bow pinned right below her neckline. Her short skirt was the exact color of her eyes. She wore flat, black shoes (which really didn't do anything for her height) and black knee-high socks.

"She looks like an elementary student," Soul muttered in a scoffing tone.

"Speaking to me again, are you?" Maka asked sharply.

"What does that mean?" Soul was apparently oblivious and still sounded pretty bored. Maka huffed, a muscle twitching just above her eye, and turned back to observe the boy.

He looked remarkably… normal. Well, at least compared to the girl. He was wearing a plain white t-shirt, dark blue, relatively baggy jeans, and off-white sneakers (they were really more gray) that had seen better days.

As they watched, he made a futile attempt to brush his bangs out of his eyes which didn't seem to be focusing all that well on the class anyway. His shaggy hair was a very dull blond. It may just have been the school's lighting, but his hair seemed to have a grayish tint to it. His eyes were an indistinguishable color. At first they appeared to be a very pale green. But look at him from a different angle and they were a silvery gray.

Neither seemed to find the situation too awkward despite the classroom full of teenagers staring at them.

"Class," Stein spoke, quieting them. "This is Emily Etebari and Micah-" he faltered which was unheard of for Stein. "This is Emily and Micah," he rushed on in and attempt to cover up his vocal trip. "They've transferred here."

He nodded at the two of them to find seats in the crowd. Emily and Micah walked through the aisles until they found two seats, coincidentally on the side of Black*Star. Predictably, Tsubaki was on his other side. Next to her was Maka and Soul, then Kid, Patty, Liz, and finally, Chrona.

Maka was hit with a feeling of strangeness. Micah and Emily had completed their row. Until then it had just been their little group of friends. She had never really noticed before, but the eight of them were a little secluded from the rest of the school.

With the arrival of Emily and Micah, they had been connected to the rest of the world. Or, the class at least.

Maka was so deep in thought that she didn't notice Stein watching her. Nor was she aware, as he was, that it was only a matter of time before she found out what a small world it really was.

**Review please!**

**What a cheesy ending! Here's to hoping it gets better. ^^' And while we're on the subject of cheesiness I might as well mention the summary… What can I say? I'm the type of person who waits until the second before they upload the story to come up with those types of things…**

**I don't own Soul Eater.**

**I know this sounds like a pretty typical, cliché story, but I can promise you that there's a twist or a surprise or whatever you want to call it in there. I'm not sure how far into the story I plan on revealing it though…**

_**Revised as of 7/3/14 (Thankfully, there wasn't too much to alter in this one.) **_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Maka may not have realized she was being watched, but Soul sure did. However, it wasn't Stein he had noticed. It was Micah.

Emily had begun chatting amicably with everyone around her, finding a way to hold up multiple conversations at once. Micah, however, was staring across the table at Maka. When Maka looked over and met his gaze, he rewarded her with a polite smile as if their eyes had met by accident and he hadn't been staring. Maka returned his smile with a welcoming one of her own, and a little spark of anger that he couldn't describe flared up inside of Soul.

Stein let the class talk until the bell rang for lunch. As they filed out of the classroom, Soul heard Maka invite Micah and Emily to sit with them. _Great_.

Soul wasn't in the mood to participate in the conversation as he ate, but he was listening. He didn't look over until the subject of weapons came up. Micah was explaining to Maka and Kid about how he and Emily were partners, which made a lot of sense. After all, that way, one could hardly move away without the other following.

Soon the three were discussing various missions they'd taken recently. Soul tuned out at that point, but there was one thing he wanted to know. From what he'd seen it was clear to him that Micah was a meister… so what was Emily?

**…**

"Hey, Micah. Wait up a minute."

Micah stopped, and he and Soul waited while the rest of their group continued on into the classroom. He seemed curious and a little wary, but open overall, and his words were polite. "What's up, Soul?"

Soul, who had been refusing to look at the new boy, now turned to him with a hard look in his ruby red eyes. "You and me, out on the front steps, last period today."

Micah's eyebrows raised. "You want to fight me?"

Soul smirked. "Think of it as an initiation, new kid," he replied, walking past him into the class.

Micah watched him for a moment. Then, a smile flitted across his face, and he followed Soul into the room.

**…**

Considering how the morning had gone, Soul had planned to mention the fight to Maka in an offhand sort of way, real cool. So of course she had to hear it from Emily first.

She started in on him the second he sat down. "Soul!" He looked over to see her glaring at him, apparently furious.

"What do you think you're doing?"

He blinked at her blankly. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know what you're so mad about-"

"What do you mean?" he interrupted, his temper rising as well.

"Ignoring me all morning," she continued over him. "But you can't let it affect your judgement like that! Do you know how stupid it is to pick a fight without your meister present?"

"I can handle myself just fine," he nearly snarled back at her.

"Maka! Soul!" Dr. Stein called them back to order. "If there's a problem, you two can take it outside. Otherwise, quiet down."

The two complied, the glares seemingly frozen into their faces, refusing to look at each other.

Though they didn't switch classrooms, there was a bell and a five-minute break period between each of their class sessions. During this time, Soul, Maka, Micah, and Emily all slipped out of the school as silently as was possible.

"All right," said Maka when all four were outside, standing a considerable distance apart. "Let's do this."

Emily looked positively giddy with excitement, and Micah's eyes had a determined set to them.

An unspoken agreement had passed between Soul and Maka- the type of wordless truce that is unique to weapon and meister- their argument was on hold. Emily and Soul began to glow.

A second later and Soul had flown into his partner's outstretched hand, the cool metal of the scythe fitting there like her hand had been designed to carry him.

Micah was holding a _kodachi_ out in front of him in a way that was somehow both offensive and defensive, cautious yet aggressive.

Maka smirked. "A Japanese short sword… how fitting."

And then she charged.

Micah stood waiting for them. He didn't move to meet them, but he also didn't retreat, which said something for the new boy.

Maka braced herself and swung hard. At first it looked as if Micah wasn't going to move at all. Then, at the last second, he sidestepped so that the scythe just very narrowly missed him. This was a tactic that Maka was very familiar with as she'd done that very thing many times herself. However, unlike her, Micah didn't take the next second to attack as she would have.

He was still playing it defensively. Maka smirked. How foolish.

Maka quickly swung Soul up from the ground. She was close enough to hear Emily this time.

"Duck!" she commanded. Micah's reflexes were impressive. Soul passed right over his head, slashing through the air.

"Maka!" But Soul's warning came too late; Micah was too fast.

He slashed upward to Emily's shout of, "Now!"

Maka felt a sharp pain in her arm and winced. However, she'd been trained for battle, and Micah had left himself unguarded. She put all of her weight into elbowing him in the chest.

With an "oomf!" Micah flew back and landed with his face upturned to the ever-laughing sun (which had begun to look decidedly sadistic in the last few moments). But Maka did not take the opportunity to attack further. She jumped backward as Micah quickly recovered.

Maka winced again. The cut was not deep, but blood still dripped from the open wound.

"Maka! Are you alright?"

Maka did not take the time to reassure her partner. Filled with a newfound burst of adrenaline, Maka charged him again.

"Maka!"

Recognizing the voice, she stopped, bringing down the scythe inches from Micah's nose.

She turned and saw Stein standing just outside the doorway of the school. Soul and Emily had transformed back immediately at the sight of him.

"You know the policy on fighting," he said with no emotion in his voice. "Therefore, all four of you will be serving detention with me this afternoon."

He turned and walked back inside. Micah followed him with his head down, Emily on his heels.

Instead of mimicking them, Soul turned to his partner. "How's your arm?"

"It's fine." She scowled. She didn't need to be reminded of it; she had sustained an injury- he had not. In her mind, this fight had ended much like the one between Soul, Black*Star, and Kid. She strode forward, and Soul followed, fully aware that he would most likely be the one to face the brunt of his meister's frustration.

**Review please!**

**I don't own Soul Eater!**

**The real plot should finally be introduced in the next chapter! :D**

_**Revised as of 7/3/14**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Unfortunately, this will most likely be the last chapter I get up before X-mas. But, you never know, stranger things have happened.**

**Chapter Three**

Maka let Soul convince her to wrap up her arm, but her mood did not improve. Micah kept his eyes politely averted. He felt bad; she could tell, and it did not make her feel any better. Out of the corner of his eye, Soul could see her fuming. Her hand shook slightly as they took notes.

When the final bell rang, the four of them didn't move. Stein handed out a packet of papers to each of them and told them to get to work- they'd be there for the next hour. Then, to their surprise, he left the room.

For a moment, they just stared after him. Slowly, they bent down over their work, sure that Stein would make them stay later if they weren't finished by the end of the hour.

They found that the packet was filled mostly with theory questions. Maka was zipping through the second page when she saw something out of the corner of her eye that made her stop. Soul looked up when his partner's pen ceased flying across the page.

"You can't be done already," Soul said incredulously.

Maka didn't answer him. Instead, she turned to Micah who also stopped when he felt her watching.

"What happened to your hand?" she asked quietly.

He looked down and flushed self-consciously. "Oh, that. Just a reminder from an accident from a long time ago."

Just below the knuckle on his thumb was a thin line of stitches, stretching all the way around his finger. Micah quickly hid his left hand under the table.

"What happened?" Soul asked, showing more interest in Micah than he had all day.

"It was back when Emily and I first became partners. We were really young back then- probably shouldn't have been using swords at that age…"

"Wow," said Maka. "It sounds like you two have been partners for a long time." The two nodded in unison.

"Micah used to be my neighbor!" Emily piped up.

"Where did you two used to live?" asked Soul.

"Italy," they answered as one. "But we both had roots here in Death City, and Emily's family lived in Japan before that," Micah added.

"Still…" said Maka. "That's a long way to travel."

"Well," said Micah. "It was for the best. Weapons and meisters can train on their own, but there are no schools like the DWMA in Italy."

All four jumped and returned to their work as the door opened and Stein stepped back into the room.

**…**

"All right, you four," said Stein, looking up from his desk. "Please bring your papers up to me. After that, you're free to leave."

The four students did as they were told, not looking at Stein as they handed in their work. Not that they would have really been able to look at him anyway- his eyes were hidden behind the glare on his glasses.

"Depth perception, Micah," Emily giggled tauntingly as her meister tripped over the doorway on his way out, nearly smacking into the wall.

"I don't really have any at the moment," he ground out through his teeth, blushing profusely.

"Why not?" asked Soul. All the interest had gone from his voice. His tone had returned to being politely disinterested whenever he spoke to Micah.

"I broke my glasses the other day," he answered. "I haven't gotten around to getting them fixed yet."

Maka watched the other two even after they'd parted ways. Micah normally wore glasses? No wonder he'd had to take cues from Emily during their fight.

They were met by bright sunlight when they walked out of the building. They were just about to start down the steps when Maka remembered something.

"Oh! I forgot my pen!" She began to run back to the school despite Soul's protests.

"Maka, wait!" he called after her. "You have a million pens!"

But she didn't stop. She knew Soul would wait for her. Maka had slowed to a walk by the time she'd reached the classroom. She was just about to open the door when she heard voices inside.

"What's the meaning of this, Stein?"

Maka stopped. That voice was unmistakably her fathers, and the voice that answered was, predictably, Dr. Stein's.

"It was hardly my idea. I suggest taking it up with Lord Death."

Maka wasn't sure what they were talking about, but if possible, Stein sounded even less please than her father.

"But why _this _class?" Spirit continued.

Stein had an answer for that one. "This class is for the top one-star meisters. According to Lord Death, it wouldn't be fair to Micah and Emily to put them in a lower class. After watching the battle between the two of them and Maka and Soul today, I'm afraid I can't really make any more excuses. They _are _talented."

"So what?" Her father's tone made it sound like he was almost pouting. "They're almost two years older than every other student in the class. Wait a minute! Did you just say that punk picked a fight with my little girl?!"

Maka felt a prick of annoyance at her father's antics. But the feeling was overshadowed by a more important question… How could her father have possibly known how old Micah was? She knew that Lord Death kept files of all the students in the academy, and her father worked closely with the reaper, but he couldn't possibly have access to those files, could he?

No… those files were rarely shared with the _teachers_. There was no way Lord Death would share those files with someone as irresponsible as her father. Which still left the question unanswered.

"True, but the two are still at the same basic level as every other student in the class," Stein responded, completely passing over his former weapon's question.

"Don't ignore my question, Stein!" Her father was still shouting, very worked up. "This is exactly why I didn't want them in the same class! I don't need him around, keeping Maka from learning and reaching her full potential!"

Maka was sure her dad would have continued his rant if Stein had not chosen to cut him off then and there.

"Is that really the problem, Spirit? Because I don't think it is." Stein's voice had gone cold and quiet. Maka could almost see her father getting more and more flustered.

"Of course that's the problem!" Spirit's voice was still unnecessarily loud, especially in comparison to Dr. Stein's. "My daughter comes first!"

"Being at the academy so much, it isn't uncommon for you to see nearly every student in this building… _I _think you can't stand the thought of having to run into him. Because when you do you won't be able to help remembering-"

But Maka didn't get the chance to find out what her father was trying not to remember. Stein's voice had gotten so quiet that she'd begun to lean up against the door. The door that had not been properly closed.

With a little click, the door swung open. She managed to compose herself before falling into the room.

Both Spirit and Stein shut up at once and whipped around to identify their intruder. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence. Then…

"MAKA!"

She smoothly sidestepped him as he ran up to greet his daughter; she'd had lots of practice.

"Maka, I dismissed you ten minutes ago," Stein said, taking no notice of Spirit who had smashed into the wall behind his daughter and was now sporting a large bump on his head. "What are you still doing here?"

"Ten minutes ago?" spoke up Spirit again, much to Stein's ire. "You've got to keep your class longer than any other teacher in the building!"

The little spark of gratitude she had felt for her father keeping her from needing to answer Stein vanished as quickly as it had sprung to life.

"I had detention." The words were ground out between her clenched teeth, and a blush lit up her cheeks.

"WHAT? What is the meaning of this, Stein?"

"Why don't you ask your daughter?" said Stein, clearly annoyed. "She knows the rules on fighting."

Spirit's eyes went cold- colder even than when he looked at Soul when he stood next to Maka. "Has that brat been giving you problems?" he asked in a dangerous voice.

"No," she said forcefully. "Micah's fine. Soul's the one who picked the fight." Spirit looked like he wasn't sure he liked this version of events any better. "And I only came back to get my pen." She snatched it from where it lay on her desk. Then, without another word to her father or her teacher, she strode out of the room.

"Maka! Wait!"

She could feel the vein throbbing above her eye when she realized he was running after her. She was gripping her pen so tightly in her hand, she was surprised it didn't shatter.

"What?" Her teeth were still clenched tight, her voice still as cold as an iceberg.

"Maka," he said in a much calmer, more grounded tone. "There's something I think you should know." He had caught up and caught his breath. He sounded serious as he so rarely did. Though she wouldn't have admitted it, her curiosity piqued. "I got a letter the other day. Your mother's been spotted in Italy."

Spirit let the words sink in for a moment. Then he reached out, perhaps to touch her shoulder, but before he could she turned and fled. She tore out of the building with her head down.

"About time," said Soul nonchalantly, not really looking closely at her. "What took you so long- hey, wait! Maka!"

But she'd already run past him. She heard him give chase all the way to the house, but she beat him there and locked herself in her room. She heard him bang on the door and rattle the doorknob, but they were futile efforts.

"Maka!" she heard him call. "What happened? What's wrong?"

She didn't answer him. She wasn't sure when the tears had begun to fall, but they were sliding down her face. She couldn't explain it to Soul; he wouldn't understand. Soul, who had run away from home, wouldn't understand what it was like to have a lost parent.

Maka could remember the days when her mother sent her postcards. Now she had to wait for information from someone else that her mother had been "spotted" somewhere?

It wasn't supposed to be that way. It wasn't supposed to be that way at all.

**Review please!**

**I don't Soul Eater!**

**Good night, everybody! ****(:**

_**Revised 7/3/14**_


	4. Chapter 4

**All I have to say is hooray for the holidays! And more importantly, the upcoming holiday break.**

**Chapter Four**

Maka let her tears continue for a straight hour, at least. And after that, she snapped at herself (silently) to suck it up. She'd vowed to herself long ago not to be a wallower. Yeah, it sucked. Well, life wasn't always fair, and she refused to be one of those pathetic weepy girls who couldn't take care of herself.

Yet, she still refused to come out of her room. Time passed. It comforted her slightly to know that Soul was still outside, leaning against her door. Every once in a while he'd call in to her and check if she was still as okay as she'd been the last ten minutes or so. After a while she stopped answering him.

The time for dinner came and went, and still she did not emerge from her room. She heard Soul get up and then return. Whatever he'd made smelled delicious, and he tried to tempt her out with it, but Maka could be one of the most stubborn people in all of Death City when she wanted to be.

And then came the breaking point.

Maka raised her head a little when she heard someone join Soul outside her door. It could only be Blair as they lived with no one else.

"Is she still in there sulking?" Blair asked. She sounded pouty and was using her purring, seductive voice. Maka didn't like where this was going…

"Well, let her sulk." The seductiveness in her voice had become even more pronounced. "You and I could always have some fun instead…"

Maka's bedroom door banged open.

She found Soul pressed between the wall just beside her door and Blair's ridiculous chest. He looked thoroughly harrassed and slightly afraid. He had full reason to be too. Maka's eyes were murderous.

Blair backed off immediate and disappeared down the hallway, leaving Soul to deal with his meister's wrath.

…

Embarrassed from her little temper tantrum the night before, Maka and Soul walked to the academy in silence the next morning. She apologized once to Soul that morning, but he'd just responded by telling her that he didn't really mind-he was the better chef anyway. The little issue with Blair was being skillfully ignored.

To be fair, Soul had his own share of things to think about. Last night had been a curious experience for him. It wasn't the first time Blair had tried such a tactic-far from it- and it wasn't the first time Maka had reacted in such a way, (as a matter of fact, he'd begun to believe that Blair had acted that way just to get Maka to come out of her room) but it was the first time he'd felt the way he had.

No one had been more surprised than Soul to find that being pressed up against Blair's ginormous boobs had not turned him on. It was a first and a peculiar experience to say the least.

Stranger still had been that when Maka had taken Blair's place, shouting no less, he'd felt the way he should have felt when faced with Blair. The way he felt whenever he came into contact with anyone especially attractive and usually poorly clothed… Strange.

Maybe he was getting sick.

Soul remembered his actions all the previous day. The heat that had filled him whenever he'd seen Maka talking to Micah.

Yup, he was definitely ill. He hoped it wasn't anything too serious. But then, Soul had never really been one to worry about such things.

The two were so deep in thought, that they were at the school before they knew it. They hadn't even gotten into the classroom before the two met up with Micah and Emily. While Emily was blissfully oblivious, Micah still looked a little sheepish, almost like he wanted to apologize again. However, he didn't get the chance. For Sid found them first.

"Hey, you four!"

They all looked around and then spotted him coming out of the bathroom.

"Lord Death wants to see you."

…

"Hello? Lord Death?"

"Hiya! How ya doin'? Wassup?" He hadn't been in his room, but as always, they'd been able to find him simply by writing 42-42-564 upon the large full-body mirror in the Death Room. Now, they couldn't see where he was, but he'd answered, as he always did. To Micah and Emily, who were new to this, such an occurrence was particularly amusing.

"Scythe-meister Maka reporting in!" she chirped cheerfully. "You wanted to see us?"

"Why, Yes." His voice was forever upbeat and childish, sounding almost like he was surprised they'd come. Like he wasn't a supreme grim reaper or anything… The four waited while he cleared his throat.

Then, "As you know, Maka, all new students must go on a trial mission with another, more-experienced weapon and meister pair before they're allowed to go out on their own. I figured that you and Soul were perfect for the job!"

It was a strange feeling. Being sort of a teacher's pet, Maka would normally do anything she was instructed, but both she and Soul hesitated. Though neither could explain, neither was sure they really wanted the job.

"Lord Death…" Maka began uncertainly. "With all due respect, Micah and Emily aren't like the other inexperienced new students… They've been more or less completing missions on their own for a while now… is this really necessary?"

"I'm afraid so. While I'm well aware of their history, rules are rules."

"Well… Ah-Alright."

"I knew I could count on you, Maka. Well, see you later!"

"Yeah, see you later…" she muttered so quietly that he may not have been able to hear her even if he hadn't already disappeared.

She tried not to show her peculiar displeasure to Micah and Emily as they went to go find Sid for the details of their mission. Maybe it could be blamed on the fact that she was still pretty deep in thought, but Maka was surprised to see that Soul noticed the change in Micah before she did.

"Hey… you got your glasses fixed."

"What? Oh, yeah…" He grinned sheepishly and pushed them farther up on his nose a little self-consciously.

"Well, I guess now you don't have any excuse for being the klutz that you are!" Emily joked cheerfully. Micah rolled his eyes and muttered something incoherent to the floor.

…

"I'm surprised we're only being sent out now…" said Maka as they tracked their way through the forest. "This is pretty close to the academy."

"Yeah," Soul responded. "Well, it'll be over after this."

As they'd walked through the forest, all four minds had silently clicked over to mission mode. Soul and Emily had already morphed into their weapon forms just in case of a surprise ambush.

According to Sid, an old French revolutionary had been traveling around for ages, only able to survive so long because of the Kishin form he had taken so many years ago. Until recently, his problem had not taken precedence because he lived so far away, but now he was gaining distance, and he had to be stopped.

Maka and Micah stopped at exactly the same time, both meisters in perfect tune with the area around them. Then, out of the trees stepped their target.

He was resembled a skeleton more than a human being at this point. Which was just as well… he hadn't been human for quite a long time. A heavily bejeweled crown was perched crookedly atop his head. He was holding a curved sword, almost as if one had combined Soul and Emily into one weapon.

"Maximilien Robespierre," said Maka in a hard voice, pointing at him with no remorse in her eyes. "In the past few centuries you have murdered thousands… it's time to put an end to your reign of terror!"

She and Micah charged him at the same time. He didn't seem concerned, and he never spoke. Though not necessarily fast, Maka reached him first. Being so in tune with souls as she was, she could easily sense, even in the heat of battle, that Micah was one to let someone else take charge, which was just fine with her.

She swung hard, and the kishin brought up his sword to block Soul's blade from slashing through him. Then, suddenly he kicked out his leg. There was another sword attached to it!

A less experienced meister may have retreated from this attack, but Maka stood her ground. She brought down Soul's handle to lock that blade as well. Now that he was nearly defenseless, the kishin's eyes widened. Too late.

Micah came around swiftly and slashed cleanly through his neck with Emily. Maka relaxed, the battle over, as Emily consumed the soul.

The battle had been quick. Much quicker than it should have been for such a powerful kishin. Sure, they had been working as a group which was pretty uncommon, but it was more than that.

Micah was _good_. Maka hadn't been able to grasp just how naturally talented he was during their little skirmish, and she was well aware that she hadn't seen the full extent of his power yet. And, also, he just seemed to have this aura about him… Micah had a very flexible soul and personality… almost like he could work with just about anybody.

It pricked at something in the back of her brain. Ever since she'd noticed his glasses she could have sworn he reminded her of someone… this only enforced that feeling.

But who?

**Review please! I don't own Soul Eater.**

**Okay, so I lied. I do have a bit more to say…**

**By way of reviews, I would like to thank:**

_jgirl6906: _**Thanks for the support, Jessie! (: I know that I already detailed out the plot for you, but I appreciate that you're following the story anyway, and good luck on continuing your own! Believe me, you're better than you think you are. (:**

_A Darker Heaven and Hell: _**Really? Huh, while I'm fond of Soul, I never really liked Black*Star. I love Chrona! XD I just wanna give him/her a hug!**

_Bree Renee: _**To be honest, usually I'm curious as to what's going to happen at this point too. XD But two strange things have happened over the course of this story. (so far) One, I planned it all out before I put it on the site. Two, I actually gave my OCs adequate descriptions. (Well, that's possibly only because Micah's description is very important. *hint,hint*) Thank you for the review! (: Plus, if that's your real name (or even if it isn't I guess) I think it's very pretty. (:**

_AnimeFan202:_ **XD Oh my god! I wish I'd thought of that before I'd written it! Stein actually does become pretty important in this story. Is it safe to assume, then, that he's somewhat important in yours? (Which is another SE story that I love and am following. (: Excited for the next update, *wink,wink*) Unfortunately, my Kid fic is sort of on hold at the moment… probably until I'm very close to finishing this one. ): Plus, I've got **_**another **_**story idea that's coming together… Let's just say it could be a little while and leave it at that. :P**

_rhgwf: _**Love your pen name XD Yes, Soul and Maka will both be a little OOC in this story due to the circumstances that I haven't really explained yet. Well, Soul's OOCness gets touched upon a little in this chapter… but I'm still at the point in the story where I haven't really gone into depth about anything. :P Thanks for taking the time to review! (:**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hooray for holiday breaks! ^^ I'm writing this now because I have time.**

**Chapter Five**

"You might as well leave, Spirit," Stein told the Death-Scythe as he closed his classroom door behind him."You know there's nothing I can do about Micah's class placement, and if you're going to completely lose your head again I have to say you're not welcome in my classroom."

But Maka's father decided not to heed his former meister's warning. Instead, he took another step farther into the room.

"It's getting worse," he said. "I swear Lord Death is _trying _to get Maka to figure it out. He never should have sent those four on a mission together. Maka can see something strange is going on… I've seen the way she keeps staring at him."

"You're rambling," Stein interrupted apathetically. "Maybe you should get to know your daughter's weapon better… it seems you two have found a common enemy."

Spirit shuddered. "I know why _he _doesn't like Micah." Spirit stumbled over his name, most likely never having used it before, but out of respect for Stein (if nothing else) he was going to force himself to. "And that idea is even worse than what's actually going on."

Dr. Stein removed his cigarette from his lips in a rare moment of being totally and completely serious. "Why are you so desperate to keep Maka from the truth?" he asked quietly.

Spirit sent a hard look his way. "I want what's best for my daughter," he said in a voice that left no room for argument. "That's my top priority."

"Then I don't see why you can't understand my intentions perfectly," Stein murmured in reply as Spirit shut the door behind him.

…

"Hey, Micah!" Maka called cheerfully. She and Soul slid their lunch trays down on the table so that they were sitting directly across from Micah and Emily.

Micah smiled back. "Hey."

"Good morning!" Emily chirped out.

Soul was the only one who didn't say anything by way of greeting. Instead he chose to eat in silence. It was one of those days where everyone seemed to have somewhere else to be, so the four of them were eating with no one's company but each other. Soul had half a mind to take off himself, join Black*Star in his extra training, or help Kid look for whatever book he was searching for in the library. But that would require leaving Maka alone with _him_. And that was too much of a compromise.

Despite Soul's coldness lunch was a fairly normal affair. Nothing was out of the ordinary… well, until the end.

Thoughtlessly, Micah lifted a hand to scratch a spot near his hairline. Maka's eyebrows shot up.

"Whoa. What happened there?" Three thin stitches formed a line on across his forehead.

"What? Oh, that." Micah blushed and hurriedly brushed his bangs back over his forehead, but they had all seen it, so he knew he wouldn't be getting away from this without an explanation.

"I'm allergic to strawberries… if I eat them I break out in hives. Of course, I didn't know that when I was a little kid. I kind of made a mad attempt to scratch them off my forehead and ended up bleeding uncontrollably…" his blush deepened.

"Really?" Maka asked, surprised. "That happens to my mom too."

"Oh… well," Micah mumbled something incoherent and stared determinedly down at his food.

Maka, however, had already been dragged back into the conversation by Emily. No, Maka didn't notice… but Soul did.

…

"Hey, Kid? What exactly are you looking for?"

Liz was lounging in the one of the library's more comfortable chairs in the back. Patty had managed to sneak all three of their lunches in, but Kid wasn't eating. He had a number of thick folders in his lap and one that was quite thin. It was the thin one he'd keep checking back with. Kid would search feverishly through one of the larger folders, find what he was looking for, and then turn back to the thin one.

When he didn't answer her, Liz leaned over close enough to see the heading: MAKA ALBARN.

"Are those the student files?" she exclaimed.

Kid quickly stood up and snapped the file shut. His brows were furrowed like he hadn't found what he'd been looking for and didn't appreciate being interrupted.

"I'm pretty sure even _you _aren't allowed to see those," Liz said in a fairly reprimanding tone. "Where did you get them?"

"I have my resources," he replied smoothly. "Liz, Patty," he said using a commanding voice he usually saved for missions.

Liz rose somewhat grumpily from her seat, and Patty jumped to attention.

"We're going to have another party."

There was an elated intake of breath from the younger Thompson sister. These words, however, didn't seem to ease Liz's frustration with their meister's evasive tendencies.

"Are you going to tell us what all this research was for? I swear, you act so much like your father sometimes…" she added under her breath.

If Kid heard her (and she was sure he had) he chose once again not to answer her. He had a very lost-in-thought sort of frown on his face. However, the frown didn't stem from what he hadn't found like Liz assumed. No… the much more troubling matter was what he had.

…

Between Soul's increasingly dark mood and Micah's silence, Maka was sure she was going to go crazy soon. Even Emily's neverending cheer had begun to suffocate her.

So she found and excuse and quickly excused herself from their company. She wasn't completely sure where she was walking… she sort of just… was. She couldn't explain it. Everyone had been acting so strange lately… She needed a levelheaded person to speak to, and there were an unfortunate lack of those. However, she got lucky.

She'd walked out onto the balcony to find Tsubaki with her elbows on the railing, looking out over the town.

"Hey, Tsubaki." Maka's voice was quiet, almost a little timid. She knew she'd just stumbled upon a fair amount of luck. She couldn't think of anyone better to have this conversation with.

Tsubaki turned, and Maka saw that she still held the serene, peaceful look on her face. "Oh, hey, Maka."

"Why aren't you at lunch?" Maka asked, coming to stand beside her.

"Black*Star wanted to get some extra training in," she replied fondly. "At first we were working together; now he's just doing some martial arts stuff. You?"

"Well… actually… I had something I wanted to talk to you about."

"I'm listening." Her voice was not only kind… it sounded almost like she'd been waiting for this conversation.

"Do you think…" Maka let her voice trail off. Suddenly put on the spot she wasn't so sure what she wanted to say. After a long pause she settled on, "Have you noticed anything strange regarding… Soul lately?"

Tsubaki smiled. She'd assumed correctly. It was a little funny actually. Maka was so smart… yet she was the type of girl who didn't see clearly the things right in front of her.

"Well, I'm not going to ruin the surprise."

"What? What sur-"

"I'm pretty sure Soul isn't even totally sure of what he's feeling right now. If I were you… I'd just make sure he knew how much being my partner meant to me."

Maka furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. Of all the people she could have spoken to, she'd hoped for Tsubaki because she figured she would be the least likely to give a cryptic answer.

Oh, how she hated being wrong.

…

It was a small gesture. As a matter of fact, Micah was walking with his head down so it was a surprise he didn't miss it.

Kid was walking in the other direction, his partners on either side. He had the air of someone extremely important. Which actually wasn't so out of place on him, but the rest of the students had stopped staring a long time ago.

Micah looked up when Kid neared him. Death the Kid didn't stop to talk. As a matter of fact, he never broke his stride. But as he walked coolly past Micah he gave the new student a raised eyebrow. Then he was gone.

It made Micah stop and frown, and, in turn, Emily stopped as well.

"What's wrong Micah?"

Had it been another student Micah may have tried to cover this up. But he knew there was no point in lying to his weapon.

"He knows something," Micah murmured, eyes still on Kid who was about to turn a corner.

"What? How can he?" Emily asked. "We haven't told anybody anything."

"I know."

However, this didn't soothe him any. Actually, it only worried him more.

**Review please!**

**So, the secret Micah is referring to in this chapter should get revealed… actually, it should probably get told in the next one. Wow, it's hard to believe how quickly this story is moving.**

**I don't own Soul Eater.**

**I only own Micah and Emily. (: I'm trying to give Emily a fair amount of screen space as she is really important to Micah. However, as I'm sure you all noticed, Micah is the more important OC.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, so I'm sorry that it took so long to get this chapter up, and I'm pretty sure it's going to be obnoxiously long compared to the other ones… Then again… this is supposed to be the climax of the story…**

**And lastly, I'm sorry for all the scene changes. Not only am I quite fond of them, but I feel that in order for you all to get the full view of what's going on, you need to see what's happening everywhere.**

**Chapter Six**

Soul couldn't sleep. He was currently laying sitting at the kitchen table, resting his head against the hard wood surface, but the uncomfortableness of the whole situation wasn't what was bothering him. He couldn't remember what dream it was that had woken him up, but as soon as he'd shot up in bed his first thought had been of Maka. He couldn't really explain why, but it annoyed him deeply. He tried to calm down by telling himself that it was normal to worry for the safety of your partner. But he was forced to remember that he _couldn't _what he'd been dreaming about. Had she even been in danger? Or had he simply been dreaming about her?

He resisted the urge to bang his fist down on the table. He knew he'd been especially tempermental lately, but _he couldn't stop thinking about her._ And he couldn't explain why.

And Micah's sudden appearance hadn't helped things. For some reason that boy just seemed to push all of his buttons without even trying.

It had escaped Soul's notice, but his face had turned into an annoyed grimace at the thought of Micah. His hand, now resting on the table, tightened into a fist. He wasn't sure how much more he could take of this…

…

"Aww, cheer up!" said Blair, filling up both her and Spirit's cups. Death Scythe was also slumped over a table, though the surrounding atmosphere was very different from Soul and Maka's dark kitchen. Chupa Cabra's was having a bit of a slow night, so the other girls could afford to glance over his way every now and then.

"How can I cheer up," asked Spirit miserably, his words already considerably slurred, "when there's _two _boys obsessed with my daughter? One of which," he continued drunkenly, "is too stupid to figure out that he loves her, and the other is her-" a hiccup drowned out his last word and he slumped back forward, leaving Blair to wonder just what it was that everyone was missing.

…

For some reason, it seemd like everyone was tired at school the next morning. Only Kid's eyes still had a shine of importance to them. So while everyone was yawning and staring off into space that morning, he moved around their little group, making sure everyone in their little group (which now included Micah and Emily) got a proper invitation to the party he was hosting that weekend.

While Liz seemed to be quickly sucked under by the gloom, Patty's spirits seemed to stay alift simply due to the knowledge of the upcoming gathering. Kid took his seat and spent the rest of the class ignoring the anxious looks Micah kept sending him.

…

Micah was particularly jumpy that day. Emily noticed and kept sending worried glances at her partner, but she didn't say anything, hoping that by not bringing it to light Micah would somehow miraculously recover.

But it seemed to have the opposite affect. He became more and more withdrawn during the day until finally he walked up to Stein as everyone else was leaving for lunch and requested to see the nurse. Stein looked at him for a long moment, and it was possible that he only agreed to send him there because of how pale he had become.

But Micah never made it to the nurse. Emily followed as he strode past the office and out through the front doors. He hurried down the steps and didn't look back.

"Are you going to go?" Micah had just slammed the door behind her after a silent walk home. Come to think of it, those were probably the first words she'd spoken to him all day.

He sighed and flopped down on the couch in the middle of the living room of their tiny apartment, managing to look downcast while staring up at the ceiling.

"I suppose I'll have to, won't I? It'll look kind of suspicious if I don't show. Everyone else is going."

"You could say you were sick," she suggested, trying in vain to cheer up her meister. "You did go to the nurse then go home sick."

But he didn't appear to be listening. For a while all was silent again. Then, finally, he sighed and said, "I'm going to have to tell her, huh?"

Emily came over to sit on the arm of the couch, never once taking her eyes off of Micah. "Are you going to?"

Micah sighed. "She deserves to know…"

"Do you really think that?" she persisted. "Or do you just want to tell her before Kid does because you'll know _he'll _think she deserves to know?"

Micah tore his eyes from the ceiling. "If I were her, I'd want to be told," he said steadily, fixing her with a firm look.

She stared back at him for just a moment before caving. "You're right. I'm sorry if I offended you."

…

"All right, let's go."

For a moment Soul couldn't speak. Maka was dressed fairly casually, yet she still looked stunning.

"Soul?" Now she looked confused. "What's wrong?"

"What? Oh, nothing. Let's go."

Kid had planned this party to be in the school's large entrance hall. When they got there they saw that it was already decked out for the party. There were tables with refreshments lining the walls, and Kid had apparently told Liz and Patty that they were free to invite whoever they liked to make the party a bit more festive because there was a good amount of other students there. Music was playing and Black*Star and Patty were dancing together in the middle of the room. Well… actually, they each seemed to be dancing to their own beat and two completely different tunes from the one that was playing, but they were dancing _next to_ each other.

"We should dance," Maka said suddenly.

"What?" said Soul, completely taken aback.

"I remember you promising you'd play the piano for me again sometime, and I haven't heard you since. Therefore, you owe me a dance," she replied smugly.

Soul couldn't remember if he'd actually ever promised anything of the sort, but he took her hand and led her to the dance floor (a safe way away from Black*Star and Patty) and they began to sway to the music.

It was on reflex that he smiled at her. She beamed back. This was the closest they'd been in a while, and not just physically. Soul was just starting to really enjoy this when someone standing right beside them cleared this throat.

They stopped and looked away from each other to see Micah, looking very awkward. "Mind if I cut in?" he asked quietly.

Soul scowled. For a brief moment, Soul considered crushing what looked to be a feeble amount of confidence on the other boy's part. But Maka replied first. Brightly. "Sure." And he was forced to release her.

Soul walked away in an increasingly bad mood. Anyone but Micah. Maybe he would have been annoyed-okay, he definitely would have been annoyed, but if it had been Black*Star, or Chrona, or even Kid, he wouldn't have minded as much. What was it about Micah that made him feel so threatened?

He almost choked on the drink he'd gotten himself when that thought came to light. Threatened? What did Micah have to threaten him over? Nothing. Unless he wasn't thinking of Maka has just his partner anymore… Soul's eyes widened.

…

"Is everything okay?"

Micah's eyes had been downcast the whole time, and he just looked a little… sad. If not a bit guilty. But what did he have to be guilty of?

"Huh? Oh, well…" Micah paused. He took a deep breath, deciding that if he was going to do it, there was no time like the present. "Maka… you don't know me like you think you do…"

"Huh?" She said, confused. "Micah… I haven't known you all that long."

"Right," he said, becoming more and more awkward. "What I mean is… you don't know me like you should."

"You're right," she said decisively.

Micah looked up, a little surprised at her abruptness.

"For example," she said, "I don't know your last name."

Micah swallowed. This was where it started. She really hadn't gotten him off track at all. And the worst part was knowing that this was the easy half.

"It's… Stein," he said softly.

Maka nodded triumphantly. "I thought so. You two look really alike. Come to think of it… you look like someone else I know… I just can't put my finger on who it is." For a moment she looked thoughtful, then she shrugged it off and asked, "Was it hard? Growing up with Prof. Stein as your dad?"

"I grew up raised by and 'aunt'. Really she was a friend of… my mother. My parents decided that my being raised by her was the best option for both of them. They visited whenever they could… which, admittedly, wasn't too often."

"Your own mother handed you over to some stranger to raise you?" Maka's voice had become cold and a little incredulous, as if she couldn't believe it was possible of anyone in this world.

"I met Emily when I was really young. We were next-door-neighbors. In a way, her friendship kind of took the place of my parents."

"What was so important in both of your parents' lives that they justified just giving you away?" She asked angrily, still strung up on her previous train of thought.

He took a deep breath. "Maka, I was the product of a one-night stand."

"That's no excuse!" She cut in. "You said they visited; they both knew who and what you were to them! I expected better of Prof. Stein…" her ending was bitter, yet Micah knew the worst was yet to come.

"It was… complicated. At the time, Stein was under investigation for… something or other. To be honest, I never got the whole details on that. Either way, they weren't about to let him take custody of some kid, even if it was his own. I think in the end it was proven to be a false accusation, but anyway," he said, realizing he was rambling. "My mother was about to be married."

"I'm going to go ahead and guess that she's divorced now if she was cheating before she'd even been officially wed," Maka said, trying to make light of the situation as Micah was starting to look more and more down.

"Yes," he said quietly. "She is."

"So what's her excuse for not going back to you?"

"She's traveling… She said she needed some time to think everything through."

That explanation was familiar; he could see it on Maka's face. So he rushed forward, knowing that it was only a matter of time before she figured it out herself.

"When my dad met my mom in the bar that night… he didn't know exactly who she was. He knew of her. She was a talented meister, like himself. It wasn't until that night was over that he found out that she was his former partner's new meister."

It only took a second for Maka to decipher what his words meant. And when she did, she broke away immediately, realeasing his hands and looking stricken.

"No…" She said quietly.

"Maka-"

"No!" she said more loudly, cutting him off. It caught the attention of Liz and Kid, who were standing off to the side, watching. And it made Soul start forward, and then stop, unsure if his meister truly wanted his help or not.

"My mom would never do that! Not to my dad, not to anyone! Even if he deserved it! My mother loves me!" Her voice had become louder and ragged; she was breathing heavily.

Micah's own face had contorted in pain. "I know she does," he said quietly.

But Maka had retreated another step. "You don't know anything!" she screamed at him. "Stay away from me!" And with that she turned and ran out of the hall.

For a moment, Soul was trapped in limbo, unsure whether or not he should really go beat what had just happened out of Micah, who hadn't moved a muscle. He paused only for a second before turning and pursuing his partner instead.

"Whoa, what was that all about?" Liz asked, surprised.

Her question was directed at Kid, who'd watched the entire scene with a cold, detached expression. "What, indeed."

**Review please!**

**Okay, so the big secret is out. However, the story doesn't end here. Actually, I'm not sure how much longer it's going to be…**

**I don't own Soul eater!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey, guys…**

**Yeah, I know. I'm an awful person. To be honest, this was one of a few stories that I have up that went on hiatus… but I didn't want to admit it. I never start a story without the intention to finish it. And I'm sorry that I stopped this one for a while right after the plot was really revealed. **

**I'm still not totally sure how long this will be- probably not much longer, considering it's been so long since I started it. But there are still a few more dramatic scenes to go. This is said mostly for the benefit of anyone who picks up the story from here on, because I don't really have any faith that anyone reading it before has stuck with me this long… And I don't blame you… Just saying…**

**Chapter Seven**

Soul had looked up abruptly at the sound of his meister's raised voice. Maka was clearly distressed. But by the time he'd moved, she was already tearing out the door. While he would have loved to have stayed and found an excuse to force Micah to tell him what had just happened… What other choice did he really have than to run after her?

The fact that it was a near repeat of what had occurred just the other day might have been funny… if he had any idea what the hell was going on. Scratch that. It would have been funny if he knew for certain that something wasn't seriously wrong.

He raced down street after street, calling for his partner, but she wouldn't answer him, wouldn't even look back or acknowledge in any way that he was following after her.

In all honesty, Maka may not have been aware that her partner was following her. She sprinted down the street, propelled on solely by adrenaline. It was a good thing she knew the streets of Death City by heart. Maka didn't even break her stride when she reached their apartment. She flung the door open and flew up the steps to her room.

Once again, Soul was left to pound on her bedroom door, shouting after her, just a second too late as it slammed shut. She didn't care. And she didn't answer him as he continued to call for her. She didn't care if he attracted Blair's attention. She didn't care if he woke the entire street with his noise. There was only one thing on her mind at the moment.

Normally, Maka kept her room meticulously neat. Now, she worked to destroy that neatness. Draws were flung open, their contents thrown on the ground before she moved on to the next.

Where was it? Everything had its place. Everything was put back into its place. So what ungodly force was keeping her from being able to find the last postcard her mother had sent her?

After the last drawer to the last desk, Maka slumped to the ground, certain now that she wouldn't find it. She wasn't sure what she'd expected it to do, that last postcard. It had been some time ago that she'd last had contact with her own mother. And what would it reassure her of? Long ago as it had been, even that last tangible proof of contact couldn't correct a mistake that had been make almost two decades ago.

A part of her still wouldn't allow herself to believe Micah's story. _Impossible_! she thought. This one word echoed through her mind over and over, repeating itself like a mantra.

At last she succumbed to the sobs that had been threatening to overtake her this whole time, and with the sound of them, Soul fell silent.

**…**

Not long after Maka's outburst, Micah and Emily had made their own way home from the party. His partner hadn't needed to be told that he wanted to be left alone, but there were only so many places one could go for privacy in such a small apartment.

Eventually, Micah had made this way up to the roof. The stars were shining brightly. Sometimes, when he had been small, Micah would look up at the stars and wonder if they were positioned any differently from where his mother could see them. Or his father. He would wonder if they were looking up at the sky and thinking of him, or if that need to see those who gave you life, or those you gave life to, faded as you reached adulthood. If perhaps _he_ was the only one staring dumbly up at the sky, overcome with lonliness.

It was on one of these nights that he had met Emily. Emily, with her intact family and parents who still worried over their daughter even though she'd proved long ago that she could take care of herself. Micah hadn't exactly poured his heart out on that first night, but they'd made enough of a connection for her to come back to see him again and again, and eventually, he'd told her everything. Before they'd left to come here, Emily's parents had considered Micah to be one of the family. But no surrogate mother and father or kind aunt could truly take the place of the real thing.

He couldn't say he was really surprised when Emily came up to check on him after the second hour had passed. A numbness had set in, but in the presence of another human being, the pain flooded back. And she hadn't even opened her mouth yet.

"Micah? Are you okay?"

What was it about simply knowing that someone cared about you that led to all your walls crumbling down? Just four simple words, and one of them had been his name. But at that moment, he lost his battle with stoicness.

Micah brought his knees up to his chest and set his forehead on them. Not a single tear fell, but his face contorted in a grimace of pain so deep he felt it in every fiber of his being. He remembered learning that emotions came from the brain, not the heart, but he didn't see how this could be true when it felt as if his chest was about to explode. His partner saw all of this and watched with genuine sympathy. Had it been anyone but Emily, he wasn't sure he would have been able to let this crack show through. Maka's words rang loud and clear in this head.

_My mother loves me!_

These words only served to increase the pain building in Micah's heart. In a defeated murmur, he gasped out, "I wish I was so sure…"

He hadn't said much. Just six little words. But Emily knew what he was talking about. She sat down next to her partner and leaned into him, prepared to wait out the storm, no matter how brutal or long.

**Review please!**

**I don't own Soul Eater.**

**Okay, so when I started this, I knew I would vaguely touch upon some of my own personal issues with my mother. But now, it's gotten a little closer to home. Since the beginning, I've gotten much better at confronting these feelings, so I'm able to write about them a little more clearly. Here's to hoping it shows…**

KHloverxcyn: **Well, I'm glad I at least managed to keep something a surprise. (: Funny enough, in this time I 'took off' I got really obsessed with Kingdom Hearts.**

People: **Haha, yeah… I realized my mistake a little while after. I'm just so used to most anime being set in Japan. I'll probably go back and fix that once I revise the story. Which I usually do after I finish it, but it could happen at any time…**

the giggle bug: **Yeah… Sorry. **

jgirl6906: **Such a low blow, but I know you well enough to tell you that you have no room to talk! (Love you…)**

I-am-blue-lava: **Sorry; my computer keeps correcting the lowercase 'I' in your name. (See! It did it again!) Unfortunatly for my readers I've got a deadly combination: I love suspense, and I'm terrible at updating.**

maria: **I'm glad you like it so far!**

PrincessGarnet17: **I'm glad. (: I tried to write it so that the readers would have at least some idea what was happening. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello, readers! (Assuming anyone is still reading this…) Thankfully, we're coming up on the end. The way I've got it planned out, there will only be two more chapters, and then I can finally put this story to rest. You know, after I go back and edit it… If you've stuck with me thus far, I am eternally grateful, and I hope you enjoy how it wraps up.**

**Chapter Eight**

Never in his life had Soul been more relieved that Blair wasn't home. He strongly believed that Maka wouldn't have opened up if she had been. He found himself in a very familiar position, only this time his partner wasn't barricaded in. As a matter of fact, her door was open, but he stayed outside until the sound of her cries subsided.

When all was quiet except for the sound of her occasional sniffling, Soul got to his feet. He moved so that he could just see around her doorframe. His meister kneeled in a broken heap in the center of her room, surrounded by the wreckage she had created.

"Maka?" he called softly.

She didn't answer. He took another step closer. She hadn't invited him in. But she hadn't snapped at him to go away either. He stepped into the room and knelt down behind her. She didn't raise her head.

"Maka?" he said again. "What happened?"

"My life is a lie," she mumbled miserably.

"Um…" Soul wasn't sure how to respond. His partner had never been known for being overdramatic. "I don't understand."

Her hands clenched into fists by her sides and she hunched in on herself a little more. Soul had to strain his ears to catch her words.

"My entire life, it's been like I've had this secret relationship with my mother. Whenever my dad would come home, reeking of booze and another woman's perfume, we'd share this look. She would roll her eyes, and I would laugh. I knew I'd hear them arguing later, but I also knew that they would love each other again by morning." She chuckled ruefully, sounding almost nostalgic. "Even back then, I thought I was more responsible than my father. For a long time, I thought that was the way all families were."

She still wouldn't show him her eyes, but he saw her lip tremble ever so slightly. Soul sidled closer, glad that she didn't pull away when he threw an arm around her shoulders. In fact, she leaned into his touch. Neither of them had ever spoken much about their pasts. They'd shared what the other had needed to know, and that was the bare minimum. They were partners. They shared a bond that outsiders could never truly comprehend, but heart-to-hearts like this were rare.

"I remember," she continued, "being so angry when they got divorced. It just felt like one broken promise after another. I really should have seen it coming… but some part of me still believed it was never going to happen. And then, when it did, I assumed my mother would take me away with her, wherever she was going. It totally blindsided me when she left me with him. I felt so stupid."

"Did she say where she was going?" It was the first thing he'd said since she'd started her tale. She shook her head sadly.

"No. She told me she was going on a personal journey, something she needed to do alone. She said she needed to figure some things out, and that when she came back, we could be a family again. At the time, I was stupid enough to believe her."

"Not stupid," he countered. "Mistakenly optimistic."

"Yeah, well, I know better now," she said bitterly. Her voice shook with anger. "She was probably just leaving to go spend time with her other family!"

"Her… other family? You lost me."

"It turns out," she revealed through gritted teeth, "that my mother cheated on my dad with Professor Stein and had another child before I was even born!"

Soul was silent. Of all the things she could have told him, this was easily the least expected. It certainly didn't mesh well with the idol-like picture of her mother that she had painted for him thus far. If she hadn't looked so murderous right now, he would have asked if she was joking. But there was still one thing that wasn't falling into place for him.

"Okay, I get why you would be upset, but what does this have anything to do with Micah?"

Finally, she lifted her head. She didn't answer him, and her stare was a little unnerving, but he didn't look away. He scrutinized his meister's face as much as was possible in the darkness, and an idea slowly began to take form. He'd seen the similarities between Micah and Professor Stein, and even Micah and his partner, before now, but what this could mean had never sunk in until that very moment. She could see it in his eyes when the realization hit him.

"Wait, you mean Micah…? Damn."

She picked at the end of her skirt. "I've been thinking a lot about my mother lately," she admitted. "When Micah told me who his parents were… I hated him for it. But I didn't doubt him. What does that say about me, I wonder?"

"That you're too smart to be delusional," he responded immediately. He shrugged. "Sometimes when you let people get close, they disappoint you. That's life."

She nearly scoffed, and her eyes were watery, but he was pleased to see her expression brighten at all. "Wow, Soul. That's deep for you."

She sighed and quoted, "One may smile, and smile, and be a villain still."

"Uh… what?"

"Never mind." She got to her feet. "C'mon. There's someone I need to see."

**…**

Emily was awoken by the sound of a loud thud and her meister's exclamation of pain. With a yawn, she swung her feet to the floor. They had moved to sit on the couch when it had gotten too cold, but she didn't remember falling asleep.

"Micah?" she called blearily, walking into his room without knocking. The bright light blinded her for a moment, and when her eyes adjusted, she found her meister standing in the middle of the room, a new cut sliced across the center of his palm. He winced as a drop of blood trailed down his wrist.

She hurried out to the kitchen, grabbed a wad of paper towels, and rushed back. He hissed in protest when she pressed the wad, none too gently, to his new wound.

"Micah, you are the most accident-prone person I know! You're going to need stitches _again_!"

"It's really not that bad," he insisted.

"Is this what you cut yourself on?" She ignored him and picked up the fallen suitcase from the floor. "It's not even sharp!"

There was silence for a moment as she stared down at the suitcase in her hand and then took in the piles of clothes and other belongings gathered around the room. "…Micah?"

He looked away, pressing the paper towel into his palm. His jaw was set stiffly. He looked almost guilty.

"I can't stay here, Emily. I was going to tell you when you woke up…" He turned and began to move the piles around with a sort of frantic energy. If there was a pattern to his organization, she couldn't see it. "I don't know what I was thinking," he muttered.

"Where do you want to go?" she asked quietly. "And when do we leave?"

When he turned back, his expression was pained. "I planned to leave in the morning… But I don't want to drag you out of your home so soon… again."

It was true. The pair had moved around a lot. Micah always seemed to feel like there was something missing from his life. Emily had hoped that coming to Death City would help him find this missing link, but if not, she was willing to try again.

Emily rolled her eyes and took his hands in hers, the paper towel caught between one of them. "You're my meister. If you leave, then I go with you. Just give me, like, fifteen minutes to pack, and we'll be gone."

He smiled, his emotions mixed. "Take your time. There's someone I want to talk to before we go."

**Review please! (I own nothing.)**

'**Only two chapters left' has become my mantra. :P With any luck, they'll be up in a reasonable amount of time. I'm working on chapter 9 as we speak…**

**Thank you to **CuteBreaker **for reviewing chapter seven! **


	9. Chapter 9

**Another update so soon? The apocalypse must be on its way.**

**Chapter Nine**

It was a little after five in the morning when Maka arrived at Chupa Cabra's. Unsurprisingly, her father was still there. But he _was_ unexpectedly sober.

"Oh, Maka, I'm glad you're here," one of the hostesses said when she walked in, apparently too relieved to mention that the girl was underage. "Your father's been so depressed lately. He won't even drink! Maybe you can cheer him up."

She doubted that, but she thanked the woman kindly for pointing out a table in the back corner. It was there that she found Spirit, who was indeed draped apathetically across the table. There wasn't a drink in sight.

He looked up and then jerked upright when he saw who was sitting across from him.

"Maka! What are you doing here? Is something wrong?"

"Yes, actually, something is," she said, doing her best to keep her expression devoid of emotion. "Why didn't you tell me who Micah was?"

Spirit's face immediately darkened. "Did Stein tell you? I swear-"

"No," she interceded forcefully. "Micah did. But you didn't answer my question. Why didn't _you_ tell me?"

His mouth opened and closed a few times. He seemed at a loss of what to say. Until, "I… I didn't want you to get hurt, Maka."

"You didn't think I deserved to know that my mother is a lying cheater? And this," she gestured at the room around them, looking dangerously close to exploding. "How was _this_ helping anything?!"

Some of the hostesses were starting to glance over, concerned, but she ignored them. Her expression was hard as she stared her father down. To his credit, Spirit stared back. Though his grimace was quite clear, he didn't appear to be looking for an escape.

"Maka," he said, his tone almost pleading. "Please understand… People make mistakes. After she gave Micah to a friend, she promised that would be the end of it; we'd never have to be reminded of it again. And soon after, you were born, and things seemed to be getting better."

"You can't just abandon your kid," she said, openly incredulous at the injustice of the thought.

"No," he agreed. "I know better now. Every once in a while, she would disappear for a few days, and I knew she was going to check up on Micah. I finally cornered her one day, and she admitted it. She swore she never made actual contact with him, but the damage was done."

He looked forlornly down at the empty table in front of him as if hoping a glass of something he could drown his sorrows in would magically appear before him. Across the table, Maka was still trying to sort things out.

"So… Coming here… Acting like a drunk, cheating dirt bag… That was all to protect my image of my mother?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "Well… It wasn't _all_ an act…"

But despite his protests, Maka could tell that she'd hit the nail more or less on the head. "_Why_?"

Maka had seen her father distressed and enraged. She'd seen him wasted, hung-over, and delusionally ecstatic. But she'd never seen him so helplessly sad.

"She was your mother," he said at last. "Even if what she did was terrible, I didn't want you to hate her. _I_ don't hate her."

And she could tell that he meant it. Despite everything she'd done to him, Spirit still loved her mother. He'd married her anyway, and the divorce hadn't been his idea. Maka wasn't sure who she felt more sorry for- her father or herself.

"You are a fool."

He didn't seem offended by her rudeness. In fact, he smiled sadly at her. "Well, you'll have to excuse me for being foolish."

There was a moment of silence that was all too appropriate, considering that everything she'd known about her life had come screeching to a halt in the past twelve hours. Finally, she averted her eyes.

Maka was as averse to change as anyone. But Soul had been right about one thing: Tricking her mind into a delusional state wasn't a luxury that was possible for her. She actually felt a little guilty. For not being able to see this falsehood until someone else pointed it out to her. For ever believing that her father could be so selfish. She bowed her head.

Maka didn't move when she heard her father get up and walk around to her side of the table. She let him hug her, albeit a little awkwardly, for the first time in years.

**…**

"This wasn't exactly how I planned for this meeting to go."

"Things often don't go the way people plan them."

Micah was sitting in Stein's classroom, his hand laying open on the desk so that the Professor could stitch up his palm. There was another period of awkward silence before he spoke again.

"You know… Most people use removable sutures…"

"Scar tissue is weak," he explained, his voice emotionless. "These will eventually become a part of your skin, so you're less likely to rip the wound back open."

"O-oh…" Micah was quiet again. He was no stranger to medical procedures; he'd gotten a new set of stitches practically every time he'd seen his father throughout his childhood. He should have known he'd end up here, for this purpose sooner or later. But this hadn't been the plan.

"You're leaving again." Stein's words didn't sound accusatory. The dead tone hadn't left his voice.

Micah looked away and muttered, "Usually, that's your job." He wasn't sure what had made him so forward. He tried to keep any harsh thoughts at bay. Maybe the lack of sleep was getting to him.

"I didn't have nearly as much of a choice as you like to think I did." Stein had finished his work, and his son took his hand back. "When you were born, I was under investigation from the scientific ethics community. There was no way I would have been allowed to keep a child. And the woman who took you in wanted me around as little as possible."

"I don't know why she didn't just let you take me," Micah mumbled, running a finger along his new stitches. "Sometimes, I think she wanted me around even less."

He was almost certain it was true. His 'aunt' had been a stern woman, cold and quiet. She provided him with food, shelter, the basic necessities in life, but she never let him forget that such kindnesses were not things to be taken lightly. She made him feel as if he didn't _deserve_ such things. She never came right out and told him he wasn't wanted, but he felt her unspoken words every time she looked at him.

"She probably didn't," Stein confirmed, the first time anyone had ever admitted such a thing to him out loud. "But she couldn't let me take you. Taking care of you was her way of paying a debt she owed your mother. And God knows Kami would have tracked her down if she didn't follow through."

"Must've been some debt." He still hadn't looked up.

"That woman owed your mother her life, something she never quite got over."

There was silence. No one had ever given him such straight answers before. It was… sad to discover how disappointing these answers were. Slowly, as if this knowledge was physically weighing him down, Micah rose from his seat.

"Well, I guess I'll be going now. Thank you."

"Wait." Stein seemed to be debating something internally. For the first time since Micah had shown up in his room that morning, his untouchable façade started to crack. "You don't have to leave. You can stay with me. And if Spirit has anything to say about it, I'll deal with him."

"Thank you," he said quietly. "I really do appreciate your offer… But this isn't about you or Mom or Maka anymore. I know I could stay if I wanted to, and maybe I'll come back one day. But for now, there are some things I need to sort out first."

**…**

Emily was waiting just outside the door for him, per his request. As much as he enjoyed his partner's company, his first real talk with his father was something he'd had to do alone. Micah knew she didn't want to leave Death City so soon, but Emily seemed to be in a pretty cheery mood, all things considered.

"I told you that would need stitches," she crowed happily. The smile never left her face. He tried to smile back for her sake.

The two had learned quickly the dangers of getting too attached. They were like modern-day nomads- when a place had nothing left to give them, they moved on. Still, it was hard to know that this would be the last time they walked through this school.

However, they didn't get for before encountering an obstacle. Micah stopped, Emily coming to a halt at his side, when he spotted Death the Kid coming down the hallway, flanked on both sides by his weapons. It soon became apparent that Kid had spotted him, but this hadn't halted or altered his course, so Micah slowly continued forward to meet him.

They stopped when they were about two feet apart, and it was clear that this meeting was awkward on both ends. It was Kid who broke the silence.

"My father tells me that you're leaving." His words were stiff and uncomfortable. They didn't match at all the cold, suspicious energy Kid had been exhibiting toward him so far.

"Yes."

Kid glanced back at his weapons who both motioned for him to continue. The gestures were not at all subtle, and Micah had to fight a smile. His view of the situation had changed drastically. It no longer looked like Liz and Patty were guarding him; more like they were trapping him here. Forcing this reconciliation.

"I'm sorry." Though he looked genuinely guilty, the words were still hard to say. "I shouldn't have looked through your files… And I didn't meant to run you out of town."

Now Micah did smile, and Emily was beaming at the other weapons. "Thank you. I understand why you did it."

And he did. Everyone he'd met in Death City had been a little quirky. Which wasn't unwelcome. He and Emily were a little odd themselves. In terms of strangeness, Kid stood out. But above all else, he was loyal and protective. He didn't want his friends to get hurt.

"I didn't mean to cause any trouble," he added.

"But now you don't have to leave!" Patty cut in, as if Kid's apology was supposed to fix everything.

Micah couldn't help the swell of gratitude that rose up inside him. He hadn't thought he'd left that much of an impression on anyone here, but that made two requests for them to stay in ten minutes.

"I appreciate that," he said again, "but it's really not about anything you've done. It's just time for me to move on."

**Review please!**

**I don't own Soul Eater.**

**(Just one more chapter to go, guys!)**


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